Big Tree Park

Today 3-20-18, General Hutchenson Parkway which connects 17-92 and Ronald Regan Blvd. has been closed to thru traffic. Big Tree Park, which only has an entrance from General Hutchenson Parkway is now only approachable via Ronald Reagan Blvd. Big Tree Park and the section of the Cross Seminole Trail that parallels General Hutchenson Parkway will remain open. This project is expected to take 9 months to complete and re-open the Parkway.

Big Tree Park is located on the beautifully shaded General Hutchinson Parkway between U.S. 17-92 and State Road 427 in Longwood. It also serves as a Trailhead for the Cross Seminole Trail. The park is a step back in time and a popular tourist destination. Walk through a natural hydric hammock swamp as you make your way on the boardwalk to the former sight of "The Senator": an approximately 3,500 year old National Champion Bald Cypress Tree that was lost to fire in January of 2012.

A memorial has since been developed and includes interpretive signage along the newly renovated boardwalk, a playground piece that mimics a bald cypress tree stump and a clone of "The Senator" that was planted near the playground. The name for the clone is "The Phoenix." Big Tree Park is also home to the Senator's sister tree, "Lady Liberty", an approximately 2,000 year old Bald Cypress Tree. This property was donated to Seminole County by Senator M.O. Overstreet and dedicated by President Calvin Coolidge in 1929.